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Geometric units

Difficulty level:☆

Geometric units are units of measurement in which Newton’s gravitational constant and the speed of light are 1: G=c=1. Quantities are hence expressed in units of length, which we will take to be metres. This may seem a pain at first, but it is very convenient when working with equations in relativity because you can omit any G and c terms which makes expressions shorter. Given any expression, it is straightforward to return it to ordinary SI (Système international) units which use metres, kilograms, seconds etc. Related are Planck units in which additionally the reduced Planck constant .

“N” means newtons, “J” means joules, and units of “1” means dimensionless. To convert from SI units to geometric, multiply by the listed conversion factor. To convert from geometric units to SI, divide by it.

Examples:

2km. In geometrised units, unchanged, so 2km.

mass of Sun is ≈ 2×1030 kg. Multiply by G/c^2 to get ≈ 1500m, which can be conveniently done in Wolfram Alpha. So the mass of the Sun is 1.5km!

Suppose we want to go the other way, starting from geometric units and wanting to express in “normal” units. Time of 1.3×1026 metres. So we multiply by the inverse of the conversion factor, so that’s 1/c. Answer 4.4×1017 seconds or 14 billion years, which is the age of the universe as crudely estimated from the Hubble constant.